Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping

After a day at the beach followed by a night drinking rosé at a rooftop bar, it can be hard to wake up at 5AM for a 24 hour Sunday shift at the hospital.  Luckily, freshly baked blueberry muffins make everything (a little) better.  These muffins are adapted from Joanne Chang’s Flour bakery cookbook but I added a streusel topping for an extra special morning treat (and because everyone needs a little extra butter and sugar in the morning!).  The flavor of these muffins is also enhanced by the addition of lemon zest and cinnamon- subtle, yet an excellent complement to the sweet and tart blueberries.  These were definitely a bright spot in a hectic morning and it was only a matter of hours before they were polished off!

Blueberry Muffins with Streusel Topping

(adapted from Joanne Chang’s Blueberry Muffins)
(makes 18 muffins)

For the muffins:

Vegetable oil or cooking spray for the pan
3-1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp. table salt
1-1/3 cups granulated sugar
5 oz. (10 Tbs.) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup whole milk, at room temperature
1 cup crème fraîche or sour cream, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
2 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
1-1/2 cups fresh (washed, dried, and picked over) or frozen (no need to thaw) blueberries

For the streusel topping:
3/8 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup old fashioned oatmeal
pinch of salt
1/2 stick (or 4 tbs) cold un-salted butter, diced

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil (or spray with cooking spray) the top of a standard 12-cup muffin tin and then line with paper or foil baking cups. (Spraying the pan keeps the muffin tops from sticking to the pan’s surface.)

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; mix well. In a medium bowl, whisk the sugar, butter, milk, crème fraîche or sour cream, eggs, egg yolk, and zest until well combined.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and fold gently with a rubber spatula just until the dry ingredients are mostly moistened; the batter will be lumpy, and there should still be quite a few streaks of dry flour. Sprinkle the blueberries on the batter and fold them in until just combined. (The batter will still be lumpy; don’t try to smooth it out or you’ll overmix.)

If you have an ice cream scoop with a “sweeper” in it, use it to fill the muffin cups. Otherwise, use two spoons to spoon the batter in, distributing all of the batter evenly. The muffin cups should be filled to the top.

Combine all streusel ingredients in either a food processor or small bowl.  If using a food processor, pulse until ingredients come together in pea sized pieces and mixture is crumbly.  If you don’t have a food processor, just mix ingredients together using pastry cutter, 2 forks or fingers until you achieve that crumbly texture.

Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the tops of each muffin.

Bake until the muffins are golden brown and spring back lightly when you press the middle, 30 to 35 minutes. (The muffin tops will probably meld together.) Let the muffin tin cool on a rack for 15 to 20 minutes. Use a table knife to separate the tops, and then remove from the pan.